Wild Fruits, Game & Marine Life of Colombia’s La Guajira

Ingredients from the arid tropical drylands and Sierra Nevada foothills.

The northernmost tip of South America, La Guajira straddles the border between Colombia and Venezuela. The northern portion of the region is home to salt flats, flamingo lined lagoons and arid plains and scrub-land that are caused by the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, the highest coastal mountain range anywhere in the tropics. It’s here you’ll find the famed goat herds of the Wayúu people, as well as cactus fruits, heirloom corn, and lots of fresh and dried seafood. The middle of the region remains arid, but transitions to rolling hills, while the elevation increases in the south with the Serranía del Perijá and the Montes de Oca mountains. There’s more vegetation in this area, and its generally much greener than in the north, with more fruit and wild game.

“Wild Fruits, Game & Marine Life of La Guajira.” Illustration by Nicholas Gill.